schemer Bernard Madoff. (Stanford's firm also lost money in dealings related to Madoff, according to the S.E.C., al- though he told clients he had no such exposure at all.) And, indeed, in an amended complaint filed last Friday the S.E.C. accused Stanford of running a "massive Ponzi scheme." It alleged that he and Davis had "reverse-engineered" their financial statements to match a "pre- determined return." Madoff's case began at the end, apparently with a confession. Stanford's has just been launched; so far, he has admitted nothing. Right now, the great mystery is the whereabouts of the eight billion dollars. According to the S.E.C.'s original com- plaint, after word of its interest began to circulate, Stanford falsely told at least one investor that he could not get his money because the S.E.C. had frozen the ac- count. Another customer was told by the company that Stanford himself had or- dered a two-month ban on redemptions. On February 17th, the government actu- ally did freeze the assets of three of Stan- ford's companies. The Yankees outfielders Johnny Damon and Xavier Nady said that because their brokers had accounts with Stanford they couldn't access their money; Damon said that he hadn't even been able to pay his trainer. 'We have no comment on whether or not there are funds sufficient to cover the investors," David Peavler, the S.E. C. at- torney, told me. Months, and possibly years, may pass before Stanford's finances are untangled. "Cases like this one take a long time," an attorney who has handled S.E.C. cases told me. "It isn't pretty, and it isn't quick, and the trustees can burn up a lot of the money." Anyone who managed to get through to the company was told that it was in re- ceivership; all questions were referred to the receiver, Ralph Janvey, a lawyer in Dallas, who did not respond to requests for comment. The only elaboration I received from many attempts to speak with Stanford's representatives was in an e-mail from one, who wrote, "I am so, so sorry, and so embarrassed." A couple of weeks after the twenty- million-dollar match-and before the S.E.C. made its charges-I rode the A train to Qyeens to meet Lennox Cush, who sells real estate at a Century 21 office in Cypress Hills. Cush grew up in Guy- ana, and was a member of the Super- stars-the only American who was. Warming up in Antigua last fall, he had twisted his knee and couldn't play against England. He was awarded about a hun- dred and sixty-six thousand dollars as a backup player. Cush's office had rows of cubicles, be- hind which sat men in dark suits. They re- garded me without interest; whatever at- tribute it was that made someone look like a customer, I didn't have. Cush, who was tall and rangy, took me upstairs to meet his boss. Coming down, he took the steps slowly, and winced. When we got into his car, his X-rays were on the passenger seat. His phone rang, and he said to the person calling, "Can you leave me alone? I just got news that I got to get an operation. My A.C.L. and meniscus." We drove past two- and three-story buildings until we came to the Hibiscus Restaurant and Bar. While Cush looked for somewhere to sit, I stood by the bar, listening to a man on his phone say that if his truck wasn't repaired by the end of the day he wasn't paying his bill. Several threats and a lot of profanity were in- volved. When he hung up, he turned to d . d " I ' ful " me an sa!, m sorry, very stress . The booths that Cush would have pre- ferred were all taken, so we found a table. A waitress brought us fried rice and vege- tables. "I failed the fitness test for my knee one hour before the game," Cush said. When the Superstars won, he jumped into the air, and when he landed he re- membered his knee. Then he walked onto the field as fast as he could manage. I asked Cush about his impression of Stanford. "He's come out of the blue, and he's changed cricket and changed peo- pie's lives," he said. "He set all of us for life after cricket." Two West Indian men walked through the door and came to our table. Cush rose to meet them. They congratulated him and shook his hand. One of them asked what he was going to do next. Cush started to say something, but the other man interrupted. "He's retired," he said. "He's a Twenty20 Stanford man now," and the three of them laughed happily. We finished our meal and paid and went out on the sidewalk. I asked Cush if he brought his money home with him from Antigua. "No," he said. 'We leave it in the bank with Mr. Stanford. He told us he will keep it safe until we need it." . THE McLEAN CENTER J! AT FERNSIDE A World-Class Alcohol and Drug Residential Treatment Program in a peaceful, rural setting with exceptional accommodations. 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